


Arctic Ties

by TransientGuest



Category: Original Work
Genre: M/M, Mermaids, Ocean, mer, mermaid, merman
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-07
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-01-30 21:41:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 11,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12661965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TransientGuest/pseuds/TransientGuest
Summary: "You're adopted."  It's amazing that even at twenty seven, two words can change your life."Why would you tell me this now?""We thought now was the right time," my mother said meekly releasing her tight hold on my dad's hand in favor of playing with the hem of her skirt."How could now possibly be the right time?" I flailed my arms around in frustration.  "Lucy's dead, I just lost my job and now you tell me I'm adopted."  I bounded toward the door totally intent on leaving the room, "And I suppose you just found me floating down a river on one of your 'vacations.'""Actually, it was an island in Maine," my mother piped up very unhelpfully, in my opinion.





	1. Prologue

“You're adopted.”  It's amazing that even at twenty seven, two words can change your life.  

 

I looked up at my parents from my slumped over position on the couch.  Raking a hand through my jet black hair I sighed because it was the only thing I could do to keep from crying.   It had been a rough couple of days.  “Excuse me?”  Maybe I had just heard them wrong.  

 

“You're adopted,”  my mother said again.  Her and my father were holding hands while sitting on our coffee table, faces flooded with concern for their only son.  

 

I took a sharp inhaled hiss rubbing my hands over my eyes and continued to pull them back through my hair, “You're fucking kidding me,” I seethed.

 

My mother looked shocked by my harsh reply.  And she probably was.  I'm usually pretty mild mannered.

 

I bolted up from my seat and started to stride out of the room.  

 

My father spoke, “Yura, we meant to tell you, it's just-”

 

My fist connected rather harshly with the wall.  “That's not good enough,” I shouted.

 

“Now, son,” my dad started pulling out dad voice, “listen to-”

 

“No, you listen,”  I interrupted again, rounding on my parents.  “Why the _fuck_ would you tell me this _now_?”

 

“We thought now was the right time,” my mother said meekly releasing her tight hold on my dad's hand in favor of playing with the hem of her skirt.

“How could now possibly be the right time?” I flailed my arms around in frustration.  “Lucy's dead, I just lost my job and now you tell me I'm adopted.”  I bounded toward the door totally intent on leaving the room, “And I suppose you just found me floating down a river on one of your ‘vacations.’”

 

“Actually, it was an island in Maine,” my mother piped up very unhelpfully, in my opinion.

 

I made a _tsk_ noise with my teeth and stormed out of the room.  My life could not get any fucking worse.


	2. Chapter One

That wonderful family “meeting” happened about a week ago.  Since then, I have traveled across the county to do some soul searching in the very place my parents found me.  Maine.  

 

It was a beautiful place and I spent much of my time over the last week exploring Acadia National Park and the area around it.  I'd hiked the Beehive trail, ate popovers (a local fluffy bread muffin, of sorts) and went to explore some of the carriage roads that had been gifted by John D. Rockefeller Jr..  And once I stopped being absolute chicken shit, I might work up the courage to venture out near the outlying islands.  

 

That's where my parents found me, apparently.  It's very strange that two native Alaskans happened to find me in Maine as me heritage definitely could be traced back to the Inuit people of that area.  I never even suspected I might not be their biological son. 

 

But for now, I'm doing some “soul searching” down at the beach.  I made my way across the foggy beach, slipping and sliding through the sand because of my reluctance to take my shoes off.  There was a fence off to the left far from the water.  It was there that I decided I would roost.  

 

I took in the area.  It was foggy and a pleasingly cool breeze made its way in from the ocean bringing a fine mist of cool salt water with it.  There were a lot of people loafing about in the sand occupying themselves with god knows what.  They definitely weren't looking at the scenery.  The fog was so thick, you couldn't see ten feet in front of you clearly.  Maybe they were all people watching like me.  

 

I saw some guy with an inflatable chair that he was running around with, trying to blow it up.  He would run, trap air inside and then sit down.  Then he'd sit down for a couple of minutes, decide it wasn't blown up enough and begin the process again.  Idiot.

 

There were even a few brave souls in the water.  Looking at them, I kind of wanted to go in the water too.  Living in Alaska, I didn't get too much of a chance to swim in a natural body of water.  It was a little too cold for that kind of activity.  Heaving a sigh,  I decided the opportunity to swim was too good to pass up.  I pulled my shoes off and languidly pushed myself off of the fence.  Then I made my way up to the inviting water.   Gingerly, I tiptoed my way into the waves.  I've been told the water never gets above 56 degrees Fahrenheit, but it felt okay to me.

 

I waded out further into the water, comfortable in the crisp waves.  When it was up to my waist I plopped down on my butt and let the ocean toss me around.   _ Ceva saasha.   _ I thought I heard a whisper but shook it off, I was underwater, after all.  There should be no whispering down here. 

 

All too soon I had to surface for air.  Getting up into a kneeling position, I gulped in a breath and moved my hair out of my face with a hand. Once the water was out of my eyes I opened them to come face to,  _ uh _ , face with another man’s crotch.


	3. Chapter Two

So, crotch in my face.  I was affronted by the closeness of the man.  I mean, who gets that close to another person?  Also, how did I not realize he was approaching me?  Oh well,  it's water under the bridge. Or over his defined six pack or wherever.

 

Speaking of abs, his were getting closer as he sunk into the water in front of me.  Beautiful sun kissed skin laid bare for all the world to see sunk into the water until I was facing a pair of startling dark eyes.

 

“What’s a fine mer like you doing here alone?  And on two legs, no less!”  The man spoke for the first time.  His voice was sinfully attractive, with a lilting accent I couldn’t quite place, even though I didn’t understand half of the words that came out of his mouth.  Maybe it was some kind of local slang I had no hope of understanding until being here longer?  What else could it be?

 

“Soul searching,” I answered vaguely.

 

Getting up from my kneeling position, I headed into shore, not giving the man a second glance.  Hot or not, the fact was, he’s a complete stranger.  A weird complete stranger.  But apparently, I’d be graced with his company a little while longer.  I could hear him splashing his way out of the ocean after me.  

 

Heaving a sigh, I made a beeline for the fence I had been so taken to earlier.  If he was going to insist on bothering me I’d at least be comfortable, dammit.  I resumed my comfortable seated position on the fence and couldn’t hide a smirk as I watched the hunky guy bound across the sand like a drunken sailor.  Seriously, it was like he had never walked on land before.  

 

I heard him muttering under his breath as he leaned against the fence next to me in a language I had never heard before.  “ _ Hatra len si xi sosorear ye len do tu ruhn zeimer lomis. _ ”

 

Right… well, whatever.  I rolled my eyes and he looked at me like I had grown another head.  “ _ Tu maru n’rat kamarta mo _ ?”

 

Now, that I could tell was a question.  “Umm,” I answered back with the eloquence of a man who hasn’t even mastered one language.  

 

“You don’t understand it,” he stated, crestfallen by my lack of language skills.

 

Well, honesty has always been the best policy. “No,” I answered simply.

 

Instead of letting it go like any sane person, this guy cocked his head in confusion, “How is that possible?” he whispered reaching a steady hand out to touch my bottom lip with his thumb.  

 

Woah, I jerked my head back at the overly friendly gesture.  “I don’t know you well enough, dude,” I hissed.  That touch was way too friendly.  This guy was weird.

 

_ Ceva saasha. _

 

There was that voice again.  I looked around in confusion.  

 

The guy next to me smirked, his eyes trained on me with a knowing gaze, “Ah, but you can hear her.  What did she say?”

 

So he could hear something too?  Good to know I’m not going crazy.  Unless, we’re both crazy.  That was actually a very real possibility.  As I’d said before: this guy was weird.

 

Even so, I answered his question.  “ _ Ceva saasha _ ,” I said aloud without any difficulty.

 

A look of shock plastered itself on the man’s face. “You’ve never been?  How is this possible?”

 

At the alarm in his voice my heart began to beat a little quicker.  His tone was scaring me a little. “What?” I asked, not hiding the panic starting to flare up in my voice.  

 

Instead of answering my question he abruptly changed subjects.  “Where are you from?”

 

I saw no harm in answering his question. “Alaska.”

 

“Ever go swimming in the ocean up there?” 

 

“No!  Why would I swim in the ocean there?  It’s way too cold!”  I stated emphatically.

 

He scratched his chin in thought. “Is it now?”

 

“What’s your name?”  he asked, curiosity dripping off of every syllable.

 

And here for some reason, I decided to give him a hard time. “Why should I tell you that?  I don’t even know you.”

 

“I’m hoping to know you better,” he said with such unfaltering honesty causing a light blush to heat up my face.  Nobody had ever been that straightforward with me.  “To do that, I’d like to know your name,” he spoke gently.

 

“Yura,” I answered just as quietly.

 

“Nice to meet you, Yura.  I’m Fionn.”


	4. Chapter Three

That night, I dreamt of the ocean.  

 

In the dream I was walking along the coast of Maine when I heard her call to me.  Those same words that had been said earlier,  _ ceva saasha _ , she whispered to me in that strange language.  I dimly realized I could understand it.   _ Come home. _ That lilting language.  It was a little like hearing home for the first time.  I don't really know how to explain it any other way.  How could a language feel like home?  I didn't know, but it did.  

 

I made it to the ocean and waded out into the icy depth.  When I was up to my waist in water I stopped and just stood there looking out to sea.   _ Come home.  _  The ocean whispered as a wave hit the rocky Maine coast.  

 

“ _ How _ ?” I asked.  How do I come home?  Wasn't that what I was trying to do by coming to Maine?

 

_ Come home.  _

 

I huffed in annoyance.  Apparently the ocean didn't want to help.  She just wanted to say those two fucking words over and over again.  Whatever.  If she didn't want to tell me more than those two words, it obviously wasn't that important.  I was tired for her not answering me.   _It's a dream_ , I decided. _I'll just imagine myself somewhere else, or something._

 

Before I could get my imagination up and running I felt an itch, so strong it almost burned, on both of my arms.  I lifted my left arm out of the water to see what was going on.  There on the soft part of my inner arm was a patch of glistening green.  “What?”  I brought my arm closer to my face to get a better look at the unnatural hue of my skin.  It looked like-

 

A large wave pulled me under.  

 

I woke up soaked on the edge of the rocky shore near Seawall Campground.  My first thought was to whip my arm up to my face to get a second look at the glimmering green from my dream.  But there was nothing there.

 

I heaved a sigh, trying to figure out how I had gotten out here.  Logic said I walked here.  Sleepwalking had never been something I did.  But… maybe... I don't know.  I was all out of sorts.  Shaking my head, I began my soggy walk back to my tent. 

 

**~AT~**

 

Later that same day I found myself at the beach.  Once again, I was one of the few brave souls that was enjoying the water.  In fact, I was enjoying it so much I completely missed Fionn until he was practically on top of me.  Heaving a sigh of annoyance I stopped my swimming.  

 

“What do you want?”  I asked not bothering to be polite.  I didn't have enough sleep last night to act pleasant.  

 

Fionn reached into the frigid water and grasped my hands, pulling me gently to my feet.  “Walk with me?”  he suggested guiding me out of the water and toward the far end of the beach.

 

He lead me up the beginning of a trail.  It started with man mades steps up a short but rather steep hill.  “You know, if I would have known we were hiking I would have put on shoes,” I groused.

 

Fionn chuckled at my grumpiness.   “I'm not wearing shoes either.”

 

_ Yeah, well, you're stupid _ , I had to bite my tongue to stop from actually voicing my retort.  The terrain became rocky and we had to walk slowly to keep from hurting our feet on the rough terrain.  Fionn was still leading me along this hiking trail, when all of a sudden he spun me around with a joyous laugh so that I was facing back the way we had come.

 

My breath hitched in my throat.  You could see the beach and beyond into the rocky coast of Acadia.  

 

“Have you ever seen a view more beautiful than this?” Fionn asked in wonder winding his hands around my waist and resting his chin on my shoulder.

 

I could only shake my head in reply not wanting to ruin the absolutely serenity of this place with my talking.  

 

Some time later, we had decided to sit down along the side of the trail and continue to look at the land.  Fionn was sitting slightly behind me, his arms still wrapped possessively around me.  I leaned back against his chest, not wanting this moment to ever end.  

 

Realizing I was content for the first time in ages had a small smile playing on my lips.

 

“I didn't know you knew how to smile,” Fionn pointed out softly.  He snuck a quick chaste kiss onto my cheek.

 

Debating on whether I wanted to open up to this man, I pursed my lips in thought.  “I haven't had any reasons to smile recently,”  I began slowly.

 

When Fionn didn't respond with anything but silent acceptance of my quiet utterance I decided to tell him about my reasons for being here.  

 

“So, your friend died, you lost your job, and your parents decided they were finally going to tell you that you're adopted?” he asked once I had told him of my troubled.

 

I nodded in response not trusting myself to be able to talk around the lump that had formed in my throat.  Fionn didn’t say anything, something I was thankful for.  Words sounded shallow when people were trying to express their condolences and sympathies.   He just hugged me tighter, laying a comforting kiss on my head.


	5. Chapter Four

“I’m still trying to figure out how you got me to agree to this,” I spoke flatly crossing my arms over my chest.

 

“What?”  Fionn began with an almost annoyingly irresistible charm to his voice.  “It’s not  _ that _ bad.”

 

I looked around at all the shops and buildings and the  _ tourists  _ who were so much more kitsch that those who braved the hiking trails in Acadia National Park.  Bar Harbor.  

 

Why were we here?

 

Apparently to walk around all of those little tourist trap shops.  Fionn excitedly pulled me into every stinking shop that we passed.  And, I’ll admit, some of them were cool.  But after you’ve been in one rocks and minerals shop, you’ve been in them all.  Once he found the third one, I gently but firmly pulled him away and lead him to a pizza place for lunch.

 

We sat at the booth enjoying the cheesy slices of heaven.  

 

“I’m so over walking in and out of all of those shops, Fionn,” I admitted as I continued to stuff my face with the pizza.

 

“Oh, come on, just a few more?”  Fionn begged with those annoying puppy dog eyes.  

 

I’m beginning to think everything about Fionn is annoying in a way that I could really learn to love.  My face went red when I realized what I had just let slip.  Even in my mind it seemed too, sudden, too quick to use that word.  Fionn looked up in concern when he noticed how red my face was getting.  I coughed nervously and averted my gaze as if that alone could prevent him from knowing my deepest thoughts.  He didn’t need to know.  Not yet.  

 

After lunch I begrudgingly let Fionn drag me to more shops.  

 

Eventually we ended up near the water, Fionn persistently dragging me forward.  He Shoved me in the direction of a road saying, “I saved the best for last.”

 

I saw people at first.  Lots of people walking up from, “What’s that?”

 

“An island,” he answered simply.

 

“But there’s a path to get to it,” it wasn’t an island.  Nope.

 

“The path’s only there during low tide.”

 

_ Ohhh _ .

 

He turned to me with a large grin on his face.  “Wanna walk to an island?”

 

I grabbed his hand and we walked down the road to get there.  Straight down the slight incline to the path to get across the island.

 

“If you get here early enough, you can see all kinds of sea animals in the little pools of water,” Fionn explained motioning to the little pools that were left when the tide went out.

 

It was awesome.  We walked the bar all the way over to the island and then decided to go on the hike to the summit where we saw a beautiful view of Bar Harbor.  Fionn hugged around my waist, resting his chin on my shoulder so we could enjoy the view together.  And in that brief moment in time I finally understood why someone would want to live in that town.  It appeared small and quaint but had a liveliness upon closer examination.  And the sea was all around it blanketing the town with its whispered promises of safety. 

 

I glanced over to the bar and saw that the tide was rapidly coming in.  Or, alright, it probably wasn’t rapidly, I just hadn’t realized we’d been admiring the view so long.  “The tides coming in,” I spoke lightly to Fionn, not really concerned with that at all.

 

Fionn turned his head into the crook of my neck and started doing things involving his tongue, teeth and a great deal of sucking, that slowly turned me to putty in his hands.  “What do you say we get stuck on an island?”  he suggested devilishly.  I giggled and let him pull me off the path into the high grass to pass our time until the tide went out six hours from now. 


	6. Chapter Five

It’s been a couple days of Fionn and I meeting constantly.  So today I decided to fly, er, paddle solo.  I had a kayak and a dry bag filled with supplies for an overnight kayaking trip.  My plan was to find some clues as to where I was born by kayaking around the area.

 

I started my little kayak trip over by Bar Harbor.  What better place to start than there?  There were a whole bunch of different Islands nearby that I could kayak to.  

 

Spending the day kayaking to islands was actually pretty fun.  It was an intense workout and my arms were burning by the time I picked an island to set up camp on.  It was a larger island, not really too far away from the harbor, but it was one owned by the park and not privately owned.  Thick trees grew on it that would give me a little shaded shelter from the morning sun.

 

I pulled my kayak to shore and positioned it on the rocks up against the edge of the cliff that separated this beach area from the rest of the island.  This cliff was about 10 feet tall and there was no way in hell I was dragging my kayak up there over night.  Once it was secure, I found a place with good footholds and climbed up the cliff, dry bag in hand.  

 

There was no chance of rain tonight, so I hadn’t brought a tent.  I just found a nice area in the trees and sat down.  From my bag I pulled some beef jerky and crackers to eat for supper.  Then, I called it an early night. 

 

_ Ceva saasha,   _ the ocean whispered.

 

_ Ceva saasha,   _ she cried more persistent. 

 

_ Ceva saasha, Yura,  _ she added so there was no mistake who her sweet whispers were for. 

 

I woke up with a start.  Drenched.  Swearing under my breath, I clamored to my feet.  That’s the last time I trust my weather app. I needed to go check on my kayak.  

 

The rain was whipping me in the face as I made my way to the area where I left my boat.  Great, not only was it pouring, but it was windy too.  I approached the cliff.  Right when I was about to look over the edge, a wave crested and threw salt water into my face.

 

“Fuck.”

 

Yup, that was the only word to to describe what I was currently seeing. 

 

The water had risen so far that there was only about two feet of cliff visible.  My kayak was nowhere to be seen.  


	7. Chapter Six

_ “Ima, look at the waves,”  a young Yura cried out in excitement while they were on their family boat. _

 

_ His mother smiled gently, “Yes, Yura, the waves are big today.  Stay away from the edge,” she held out a hand so he could take it.   _

 

_ The excited child walked over to his mother, grasping her extended hand right as a wave smacked the side of the boat sending a fine mist onto both of them.  Yura giggled and wiped the salt water off of his face.  “Feels good,” he said referring to the cool mist upon his skin. _

 

_ “I bet it does, with all of this sun,” agreed his mother, “but remember, the water here is  _ cold _.  So I don’t want to hear about you trying to swim in the ocean.” _

 

_ “How cold is it, Ima?” Yura asked.  He couldn’t see how something that felt so good and smelled so good could be bad.  The ocean wouldn't hurt him. _

 

_ His mother looked down at his inquisitive face trying to think of how to explain this in a way that impressed upon how important it was that he stay out of the frigid ocean.  “Do you remember when Lucy decided that she wanted her goldfish to experience winter so she put him in the freezer?” _

 

_ “Yeah.  He died,” Yura recalled somberly.  _

 

_ “Yup,” she nodded and gestured to the ocean. _

_ “I’ll die if I go in the ocean?” Yura asked. _

 

_ She didn’t answer that question outright, “It’s too cold for people.” _

 

_ They both went below deck to get warm.  _

 

**~AT~**

 

I blinked my eyes and found an old lady staring at me.  Looking around, I realized I wasn't  in the open anymore.  I was in a house on a couch.  With absolutely no idea how I got here.  Last I remembered, I was stuck on an island without a boat.  

 

I felt weak.  It had been days that I was stuck there.  I didn't pack enough food or water for that.

 

“Fucking idiot,” the old woman groused.

 

I blinked at her in shock, “Excuse me?”

 

“You're a fucking idiot,” she repeated.

 

I opened my mouth to object but she plowed over any words that I was going to string together.  “Why the hell were you on that island?  I found you there delirious from heat.  What were you thinking staying out of the ocean that long?” 

 

With surprising strength, like really surprising, she manhandled me off of her couch and carried me up a flight of stairs.  “Put me down before you hurt yourself,” I ordered but my pleas fell on deaf ears. 

 

She tightened her hold and continued her trek through the second floor of her house.  Entering her bathroom, she threw me into her bathtub, clothes and all.  I quickly tried to scramble out of it and received a death glare that had me halting in my tracks.

 

“Stay there,” she snapped. 

 

Putting the stopper in the drain, she turned the water on making it a lukewarm temperature.  It started to fill the tub while she rummaged through her medicine cabinet.

 

She pulled out a container of sea salt and promptly dumped half of the large jar into the water muttering under her breath about what an idiot I was the whole way.

 

“Any weaker mer would have died long ago,” she growled.

 

She continued to watch me as the water level rose.  “Nothing’s happening,” she stated with a touch of confusion.

 

“I'm getting wet,” I disagreed unhelpfully.  But apparently, that's not what was supposed to be happening.

 

“What's wrong with you?  Why isn't it working,” she said with so much concern that I was worried for my well-being.  Whatever she was trying to fix with me wasn't fixing.

 

She crouched down next to the tub and pulled out a conch shell.  

 

“Who the hell keeps a conch shell in their bathroom?” I asked rudely

 

She made her way over to the window, opened it up and blew into the shell.  It made a fairly loud noise.  Maybe she was trying to get someone's attention?

 

Leaning out the window she yelled down to someone outside, “Get up here now!  Something’s wrong with this mer.”

 

“What’s a mer?” I voiced.  If she was gonna call me one, I might as well know what it was.

 

She turned her attention to me with wide disbelieving eyes.  “You don’t know what a mer is?”

 

“No, should I?”

 

Taking in a shaky breath, she went to answer me, but was distracted by the person in the doorway.

 

“How can I help?”  Fionn asked from the doorway. 


	8. Chapter Seven

The old woman walked over to Fionn and threw her hands dramatically in the direction of me in the tub.  “It’s not working.”

 

Fionn’s gaze landed upon me for the first time.  Great, he sees me chilling in the bathtub of a crazy lady.  Should I wave?  He seemed deep in thought for a couple of minutes, just looking at me in the lukewarm water.

 

“I wondered too why he wasn’t changing,” Fionn spoke quietly.

 

Great they were both on the same mushrooms.  Maybe if they gave me some I could be let in on the game they were playing too.

 

“Explain,” the lady barked.

 

“Yeah, explain,” I tagged on, feeling like I should be participating in this conversation in some way.  All I got was a glare for my efforts.

 

“Yura,” Fionn addressed me, “where are you from?”

 

I answered, not quite seeing how this was relevant, but humoring him, “I am from Alaska, but my parents found me abandoned on an island here.”

 

“He’s a northerner,” the lady muttered under her breath.

 

“An extreme northerner,” Fionn agreed.  “I actually think he might be from Alaska and somebody brought him here as a baby.”

 

“He needs colder water,” the old woman said with understanding.

 

“He needs colder water,” Fionn agreed.

 

They both came over to the tub.  I shrank down, into the water, a little nervous with what they were going to do.  The old lady reached her hand down into the water.  There was a cold emanating from it that I could see.  Tendrils of ice snaked from her fingers lowering the temperature of the water from lukewarm, to cool, to cold to frigid.

 

I found it strange that I knew the water was getting colder, but it didn’t actually feel cold to me.  It was actually weirding me out a little.  The skin on my arm started to itch.  I reflexively reached my other hand up to scratch it and gasped when I felt something strange.  There on my arm were glistening green… scales.  They looked like fish scales. 

 

I jumped to my feet.  

 

Pushing past the two spectators, I clamored out of the tub.  Like hell were they turning me into a fish!  

 

I bolted out of the room and quickly made my way out of her house.  I could hear their footsteps hurrying after me. 

 

I ran from her house, not really sure where I was going.  I figured eventually I would get to a place where I could get help.  

 

Looking down at my arm, I let out a strangled cry.  There were more scales.  My whole forearm, both of them, had shining emerald scales all over them.  The change from flesh to scales was seamless and weird to my eyes.  Why was this happening?

 

“Shit,” I hissed as I made it to a rocky beach.  I was still on that damn island.  

 

“Yura,” I heard Fionn gasp as he finally caught up to me.  He rested a friendly hand on my shoulder and I rounded on him.

 

“What did you  _ do _ to me?”  I seethed looking at him with fear in my eyes.  

 

“Nothing, we were trying to help you,” Fionn tried to explain.

 

“By turning me into a fish?” growling I took a swipe at him.

 

“No, by giving you energy to recover.  You were-”

 

Shut the hell up, Fionn,” I barked walking away from him as fast as I could manage on the rocky coast.

 

Yura, listen,” Fionn tried again, grabbing my arm.

 

I reached my hand out and grabbed Fionn’s wrist, “No!  Let go,” and a white spark shot from my fingertips where we touched.

 

Fionn recoiled in shock staring at his hand.  

 

What had I done to him?

 

What had  _ he _ done to  _ me _ ?

 

I turned my back on him.  “Leave me alone Fionn,” I began evenly.  “I don’t want to see you anymore.  Whatever we had… it’s over now.”  

 

I really liked him, but I didn’t understand what was happening, and why Fionn had done this to me.  It was better if we just didn’t see eachother anymore.  

 

I walked further along the coast, glancing back, I saw that Fionn was gone.  A pang of guilt shot through me.  Why the hell did  _ I  _ feel guilty?

 

Pushing down my warring feelings, I started looking for a way off of the island.  


	9. Chapter Eight

I sat on the examination chair having a lovely conversation with a doctor.  I was supposed to be finding myself here in Maine, but I managed to find a cold instead.  Or… I’m not actually sure if it is a cold.  Ever since the day Fionn and that strange lady made those scales appear on my arm I have felt strange.  

 

The scales went away by the time the next day had hit but with the disappearance of them fatigue and dehydration appeared.  I was always thirsty and the many Nalgenes that I drank a day were not quenching that thirst.  I was so thirsty it was keeping me from sleeping.  I spent long hours in my tent not able to do much of anything, just trying to sleep, or work up the energy to move. 

 

I explained this all to the doctor and he sent me for blood work.  Now I was just waiting for him to discharge me.  And then it was only a matter of time before the test results came back.  Hopefully they could figure out what was wrong with me.  I was tired of laying in bed all day. 

 

She came into the room and discharged me, giving me a prescription for some sleeping pills that she recommended I get so I could actually get some sleep. 

 

**~AT~**

 

Doctor Sophia Smith stared at the results of her patient’s blood work in shock.  She could tell there was something different about him but she had no clue how different he was.  The results of the blood work for  _ Enno, Yura  _ came back with some interesting results.  So interesting that she found herself making a slide of with his blood on it so she could examine it under a microscope.  

 

There, plain as day under the microscope were red blood cells that were all wrong, for a mammal.  In the middle of each blood cell was a clear nucleus, something that was missing from a human’s red blood cells.  Every cell was also bigger than a human blood cell coming in at 10.7 um instead of 7.7 um.

 

She decided the best course of action was to converse with some of her good friends over at the College of the Atlantic to see if they could glean anything from this strange blood.   

 

“You said this was a patient you had today?” Geert asked taking another look through the microscope.

 

“Yeah, I had him yesterday,” Sophia confirmed.  “He was really tired and dehydrated but otherwise there really seemed to be nothing wrong with him.”

 

“So you took som blood for further tests,” Geert nodded his head.  It made sense.  Couldn’t find anything wrong so you take some blood for further tests.  But this blood.  It was strange.  

 

“Do you mind if I call Greta to have a look at this?”  Geert asked Sophia.  He had a feeling if anybody could make sense of this strangeness, it would be her.

 

“Greta?  Isn’t she the one that believes in all that mystical shit?”  Sophia questioned.

 

“Yup, that’s her,” Geert agreed completely unperturbed by Sophia’s tone of voice when talking about the eccentric marine biologist.  In his opinion, some crazy mystical shit was exactly what they needed to make sense of these abnormal findings.

 

He called her up on his phone and, sure enough, two minutes later found Greta bouncing into the office eager to look at the slide.  “Where is it?  Where is it?” she asked excitedly bounding over to the microscope to have a look before Geert could motion to where it was.

 

Sophia rolled her eyes at the idiotic display before watching Greta look at the slide. 

 

“Where did you find this?” Greta asked quietly with barely contained excitement.

 

“She pulled it off a hobo,” Geert said sarcastically.

 

Sophia hit him in the arm, “I was running blood work on a patient and noticed some anomalies that I thought needed another doctor’s opinion.”

 

“So,” Greta began slowly, “You’re saying you got this from something  _ living _ ?”

 

“Oh for crying out,” Sophia cut herself off.  “Of course he was living.”

 

“On land?” Greta asked confused.

 

“ _ Yes _ ,” hissed Sophia.  “Walked into my office on his own two feet just yesterday.”

 

“Interesting,” Greta Mused.

 

“What’s so interesting?” Geert asked the question on everyone's mind.  Well everyone except Greta, who apparently had everything figured out. 

 

“Your person who  _ walked _ into your office yesterday was a mer,” Greta explained calmly.

 

“A what?” Sophia asked in confusion.

 

“A mer,” Greta repeated.  “Mermaid.  Merman. You know, part fish.”

 

“That’s impossible,” Sophia stated firmly.

 

“Is it?” Geert questioned a strange lilt in his voice.

 

There was a glint of greed in the marine biologist’s eyes, “We’ve finally found a live one.”

 

Unbeknownst to the three doctors in the room, the eels in the tank that Geert had in his office were busy spreading the rumor of a live mer to other aquatic life in the building.  From there, the news spread to surrounding water and buildings and soon enough to the ocean.  Eventually Fionn found himself listening to a rumor of an unchanged mer on land and how the marine biologists planned to obtain him for study.

 

His heart leapt to his throat.  He knew exactly who they were talking about.

  
  


**~AT~**

 

Fionn decided the time to be passive was over.  He didn’t care if Yura hated him for the rest of their existence, he needed to warn the man about the scientists that were apparently hot on his trail.

 

He bombarded into Yura’s tent eyes ablaze with some mix of adrenalin, determination and fear.  Yura shot out of bed at the intrusion.  He yelled, “What the hell are you doing here?” at the same time Fionn shouted that he needed to leave.

 

“Excuse me?” Yura asked, not sure he’d heard Fionn right.

 

“You need to leave,” Fionn began tugging Yura to his feet. “Now.”

 

“What?  Why?”  Yura asked still half asleep.

“I’ll explain on the way to the airport,” Fionn decided.  “You need to get far away from here.  Go back to Alaska for a while.  Stay out of water.”

 

They approach Yura’s rental car.  Yura stumbles toward his still unpacked gear, “My stuff.”

 

“I’ll take care of it,” Fionn tells him pushing him to the passenger’s seat.  “Give me your keys, you’re in no condition to drive.”

 

**~AT~**

 

I reluctantly gave my keys to Fionn and clamored into the passenger seat.  He better not get into an accident because I was the only person that was supposed to drive this thing.

 

On the way to the Hancock County Airport Fionn filled me in on this fantastical story of scientists being after me because I was a mer.  I laughed in his face when he was done with the unbelievable tale.

 

“You’ve been thirsty since those scales disappeared, haven’t you?” he asked.  “And tired,” he added not expecting an answer.  The look on my face said it all.  

 

“I know what you’re going through.  I went through the same thing,” Fionn explained quietly.  “One day I was human the next I was growing a tail.  I left home at fifteen for the ocean and have lived there ever since.”

 

“Why are the scientists not after you?” I asked.  If he had been here so long surely they would already have their live mer specimen and could leave me alone.  

 

“I’ve never been stupid enough to go to a doctor,” Fionn answered with a slight smirk.

 

“Shut up,” I hissed and slapped him lightly on the arm.

 

We arrived at the airport and quickly returned my rental car.  Once we were in the main lobby Fionn told me to go buy a ticket.  I turned to go purchase my boarding pass when he grabbed me by the hand and flung me back into a searing kiss that would have made a hooker blush.  “I’ll find you again Yura Enno.  This is not goodbye,” he whispered before leaving me on my own for the flight.

 

I watched him go, face red from that kiss, and head reeling in confusion.  I liked him a lot.  But he had kind of taken my humanity from me.  The more I thought about it, the more I wasn’t sure that was exactly the truth.  He did make the scales appear, but that hadn’t been the first time that I had seen them.  That night when I had woken up in the water there had been green scales on my arm.  I had almost forgotten about that.  And, that lady made it sound like if i didn’t get into water I was going to basically die.  If I hadn’t been strong, I would have been a lot worse off.  So it sounds like it was only a matter of time before I would have become sick, from avoiding the water I didn’t know I shouldn’t avoid.  This whole situation was making my head hurt.

 

Deciding to focus on the problem at hand, I walked up to purchase a boarding pass for the next available flight to Logan Airport in Boston. Once I was there I could get my flight to Alaska.

 

“Hi, I’d like a ticket to Logan Airport on your next available flight,” I told the lady handing her my licence.

 

She started to put my information in the system.  I see her face freeze in alarm and look from my licence to my face several times before reaching for a walkie talkie.  She called for assistance.  

 

I was shocked to see some TSA agents coming my direction.  I was even more surprised when they wrestled me into a pair of handcuffs.  A task that was made pretty easy by me because I had absolutely no clue what was going on.  I basically stood there with my mouth hanging open in disbelief while they cuffed me.

 

They took me to a cell and sat me in a chair handcuffing me to the armrest.  “Can you tell me what’s going on?” I asked a little more than freaked out.

 

“You’re on the no fly list,” the one agent grunted.

 

“Since when?” I whined a little indignantly.

 

Another agent began politely, “Well, I’m assuming it happened when,” his tone changed to harsh and grating, “I don’t give a rat’s ass.”

 

“You’re to be detained until the proper authorities can deal with you.”

 

Fan-fucking-tastic.

 

A few hours of mind numbing boredom later and two people entered my cell.  One was a boisterous woman, “Oh, Geert, isn’t he everything you’ve ever dreamed of?” she squealed when she caught sight of me.

 

The tall man with her looked at her with a gentle smile before turning his gaze to me.  “Yes, Greta, he’s the perfect specimen.”

 

The woman, Greta, pulled a shot from her pocket.  

 

“Whatever that is, I don’t want it,” I said flatly as they both continued to advance toward me.

 

Greta laughed, “It’s funny that you think you have a choice in the matter.”

 

Yeah this wasn’t going to end well.

 

“Geert, hold him down while I give him the sedative.”

 

He nodded to her and proceeded to hold me down while she stuck the sedative into my arm.  I didn’t make it easy for him, swearing, biting and kicking any part of him that I could reach, but he was an unmovable force.  The sedative was administered and I found myself struggling to stay awake.

 

The last thing I heard before passing out was, “We finally have a mer.”

 

_ Shit _ .


	10. Chapter Nine

**Greta Bower     21:41 EST July 16, 2012**

Subject has been placed in a dental chair and administered 0.75 ml of ketamine to ensure sample collection occurs with minimal discomfort. Doses will be readministered as needed to keep the subject sedated until all samples have been collected. 

**Greta Bower     21:46 EST July 16, 2012**

Subject is restrained after an adverse effect of the tranquilizer caused his limbs to spasm as if

having a seizure.  

**Greta Bower     22:04 EST July 16, 2012**

Subject is given a second 0.75 ml dose of ketamine. 

**Greta Bower     22:27 EST July 16, 2012**

The following samples have been obtained for further study:

DNA - swabs on the inside of the cheek.

Tissue -  samples collected from underside of left arm and lower right buttock. 

**Greta Bower     22:29 EST July 16, 2012**

Subject is given a third 0.75 ml dose of ketamine. 

**Greta Bower     22:54 EST July 16, 2012**

Blood - one pint of blood has been extracted.

X-ray - full body search for anomalies before transition.

MRI - full body search for anomalies before transition.  
  


**Greta Bower     23:00 EST July 16, 2012**

Objective

In this experiment the subject’s healing capabilities will be tested.  Methods: 2nd degree burn, laceration, ice box, contusion.

Right arm of the subject has been sliced with a scalpel. Superficial wound. No gaping.  Will monitor healing duration.

Small deep incision was made on the upper left shoulder.  Gaping wound. Will monitor healing duration. 

Left palm has been given a small second degree burn.  Blistered immediately. Will monitor healing duration.

Right thigh has been given a mild contusion.  Will monitor healing duration.

**Greta Bower     00:56 EST July 17, 2012**

Subject's superficial laceration has completely healed.

**Greta Bower     20:14 EST July 19, 2012**

Subject's gaping wound has completely healed.  There is no scarring. In average Homo sapiens the process takes about three weeks for small wounds.

**Greta Bower     19:34 EST July 20, 2012**

After just four days, the subject's contusion has completely healed.  In average Homo sapiens the healing process takes two to four weeks. 

**Greta Bower     22:23 EST August 6, 2012**

The second degree burn on the subject's left palm has been healing slowly.    A stark difference to the, up until now, above average healing abilities the subject seems to possess.

**Greta Bower     23:53 EST August 20, 2012**

After more than a month, the second degree burn has healed.  This particular specimen seems to have an adverse reaction to heat.  

**Greta Bower     00:14 EST August 21, 2012**

Subject has been placed in a small room.  The purpose of this experiment is to see how low of temperatures the subject can function in.  Every 12 hours the temperature will be lowered 2 degrees Celsius. The test will begin at 5 degrees Celsius. 

**Greta Bower     12:14 EST August 21, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to 3 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     00:14 EST August 22, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to 1 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     12:14 EST August 22, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -1 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     00:14 EST August 23, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -3 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     12:14 EST August 23, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -5 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     00:14 EST August 24, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -7 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     12:14 EST August 24, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -9 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     00:14 EST August 25, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -11 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     12:14 EST August 25, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -13 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     00:14 EST August 26, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -15 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     12:14 EST August 26, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -17 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     00:14 EST August 27, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -19 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     12:14 EST August 27, 2012**

Subject is functioning normally.  No sign that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -21 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     00:14 EST August 28, 2012**

Subject’s basic movements have slowed down.  No adverse signs that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -23 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     12:14 EST August 28, 2012**

Subject’s basic movements have slowed down.  No adverse signs that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -25 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     00:14 EST August 29, 2012**

Subject’s basic movements have slowed down.  No adverse signs that the temperature is affecting him.  Room temperature is lowered to -27 degrees. 

**Greta Bower     06:14 EST August 29, 2012**

After six hours at -27 degrees Celsius, the subject began to show symptoms of the beginning stages of frostbite.  He was taken out of the room to avoid permanent damage.

Subject's core body temperature was -24 degrees Celsius.  Suspected that he is cold blooded. 

*************

 **Geert:**  This is Geert Fenstamaker.  The time is 16:16 EST. It is August 29, 2012.  The subject is restrained in a dentist chair and hooked up to a polygraph.  The questioning will begin. What is your name.

 **Subject:** Fuck you.

 **Geert:** Come on, this is easy.  I ask a question. You answer it without being an asshole.  Let's try again: what is your name?

 **Subject:**  Yura Enno.

 **Geert:** Where are you from?

 **Yura:**   I was raised in Alaska.

 **Geert:** But you weren't born there?

 **Yura:** My parents found me in Maine.

 **Geert:** What brings you to Maine?

 **Yura:**  I wanted to see where they found me.

 **Geert:** Did you?

 **Yura:**  Yes.

 **Geert:** Did anything else happen while you were there?

 **Yura:**  Yeah. My kayak got swept away by the storm and I almost died.

 **Geert:** But you didn't. 

 **Yura:**  No shit.  Some old woman that lives on the island found me and gave me water.

 **Geert:**  What kind of water?

 **Yura:** Fucking drinking water, what do you think?

 **Geert:** Are you sure?

 **Yura:**   Yeah.  What else would it have been?

 **Geert:** Salt water.

 **Yura:**  Why would it be salt water?

 **Geert:**  Because you're a mer.

 **Yura:** Is that what this is about?  I'm not a mer.

 **Geert:**  Would you be willing to prove that by submerging yourself in salt water?

 **Yura:**  No.  I have nothing to prove to you.  

 **Geert:**  If you don't willingly comply, we'll just force you.

 **Yura:**   You can't do that!

 **Geert:**   No reason to get upset.  But you'll find we can and we will.  So I'll ask you one last time: will you prove you're not a mer by submerging yourself in salt water?

 **Yura:**  No!  Fuck you!

 **Geert:** Holy shit!

 **Geert:**  I have left the room with the subject.  Before leaving there was a strange white light that seemed to shoot out of his hands.  We'll want to look into that later. But first, we'll start this transition. 

*************

**Geert Fenstamaker     18:47 EST August 29, 2012**

Subject will be submerged in salt water up to his shoulders in order to precipitate the change into a mer.  Water temperature is set to the average ocean temperature of 62.6 degrees Fahrenheit. 

**Geert Fenstamaker     22:53 EST August 29, 2012**

Subject has been submerged in salt water for over four hours with no change.  Either we were wrong, and he is not a mer or there's something missing from the transition process.  

**Geert Fenstamaker     1:38 EST August 30, 2012**

It has been suggested that the water temperature needs to be changed.  The theory is that, just like fish adapt to certain temperatures of water and thrive in those locations, he might need a more specialized temperature of water to begin his transition.  The tank has been drained and cleaned. It is now being refilled with warmer water. Temperature 80 degrees Fahrenheit. This temperature was decided because of the suspected origin of the subject.  

**Geert Fenstamaker     1:48 EST August 30, 2012**

Subject has been removed from the tank.  He was screaming and we quickly realized that burns were erupting over his body.  A few scales appeared, and blood seeped out through the green. It is estimated that about 40% of the subject's body has second, and possibly even third degree burns.  He is being treated for the burns before we return to the transition experiment. We will use cold water this time.


	11. Chapter Ten

Geert was cowering in a cheap plastic chair as his irate sister screamed at him.  After he had fucked up and burnt their key to scientific discovery he had hesitated minutely before growing a pair and calling his lovely elder sister, Greta, to the lab.

“You absolute moron,” she growled, causing Geert to swallow.  “How could you fuck up this badly? Didn't you read the notes I left you?”

Geert opened his mouth to speak.

“Don't, “ Greta interrupted before he could even mentally formulate his reply, “I know you didn't read them.  If you did, you would have known that our lovely mer subject reacted badly to burns.”

Geert ran a shaky hand through his hair. “I know.   I really fucked up. And I'm sorry.”

Greta scoffed at his apology.

“But, I've been thinking,” he hesitated.

“Go on,” Greta pressed hopefully, interested in what her dolt of a brother had to offer.

“I think,” Geert took a breath, nervous of what Greta would say to his proclamation. “I think I have an idea of how to fix this.”

~AT~

Everything hurt.  It hurt to move. It hurt to breathe.  I was laying on a glorified cot. The blanket those sadistic fucks gave me had been kicked to the floor of my cell.  It bothered my skin too much to have that constant light pressure rubbing against it. I was so tired I couldn't even muster the energy to lift my head up, let alone stand and try to figure out how to escape this hellhole.  

Tilting my head downward, I looked at my arms.  There were patches of green scales that sprung out when they put me in that boiling water.  Blood was crusted in between some of those scales. Where there wasn't blood, there were large chunks of my flesh that had been burned.  Most of the blisters had popped and I was left.with oozing open sores. The scientists were watching me diligently for signs of infection.  

I just want this all to end.  I'm in no way saying I want to end my life.  I love myself too much for that. But I definitely want to end their control over my life.  

A few days later, I was a scabby mess.  The scientists also decided that this meant I was well enough to proceed with their experiments.  They came into my room to get me, paying no mind to the “fuck you”s I threw in their direction as they manhandled me to that bloody tank.

My struggling got more intense the closer we got to the tank.  There was no way in hell they were putting me back in that thing.  I'm still recovering from the last dip. 

Nothing I tried allowed me to escape and soon enough I found myself plunged into water.  I was pleasantly surprised to find myself not burning alive. Actually, there wasn't anything happening to me at all.  It was just like when I took a shower at home. The scales I had remained, but I wasn't sprouting more. 

I shot a glare at the scientists that had the audacity to throw me in the water again.  I ached tremendously and wanted nothing more than to curl in on myself in the lukewarm water I was stuck in.  

An idea suddenly came to mind and I voiced it to the two of them, “Did it ever occur to you that I'm not whatever the hell you think I am?”

“Oh no, you're definitely a mer,”  the girl said back to her bubbly self, “we just need to figure out how to trigger the transition.”

Well, somebody’s happy.  That makes one of us.

“Maybe start by not nearly boiling me alive,”I growled looking pointedly at the guy, Geert.

She gave him a disapproving look.  Turning back to me she said, “Luckily for you, He's not going to be conducting this experiment.   I am.”  

Now why didn't those words reassure me.

“Water is at 15 degrees Celsius right now, Geert.  Let’s gradually start to lower it stopping for observations at 10 degrees,”  

Great, instead of boiling me, they were gonna freeze me.  

“And Geert, don't think I missed that you wrote your temperatures in Fahrenheit.  You need to fix that, you blockhead. Nobody is ever taken seriously when they use Fahrenheit.”

I could feel the water getting colder around me as the siblings kept bickering.  

“The temperature's hit 10, sis,” Geert informed Greta.

Greta excitedly bounced over to the tank.  Upon seeing my unchanged self she developed a frown.  “Geert,” she called, “lower it another 5.”

Apparently she didn't see what she wanted to see.  

Once again, I felt the water getting colder.  Strangely, this didn't make me feel cold. It actually felt kind of good.  Soothing. 

“Geert,”  Greta whispered eyes locked on my flesh.  She gasped, swallowed, and tried again, “Geert, what's the temperature?”

Seeing her shocked face, I glanced down at my torso and noticed the burns, all those burns, they were healing.  And they were healing fast. I watched as they practically vanished in under a minute.

“Temperature just hit 5, wanna keep going?”

“Take it down to zero,” Greta ordered.

Greta was staring at me intently.  It was pretty awkward and very unnerving.  I wanted to bite back with some kind of smart comment but became highly distracted when I realized I could no longer breathe.

I panicked, thrashing around in the water, making horrible gasping noises.  By some instinct I didn't even really know I possessed, I retreated from the surface of the water, swimming down to the bottom of the tank.  I curled in a ball. I was going to die in this tank. This must be some form of shock because of all their meddling. My throat burned terribly.  I couldn't hold my breath much longer. Black spots were dancing around my vision. When I saw no other option I took a breath. 

Water flooded my lungs.  It consumed me. 

And I felt better than I ever had in my life.

I was breathing like normal.  Or, scratch that, not like normal, I realized as I ran a hand over my sore neck, I had gills.  

I really was a fucking fish.  

As if to bring home that point, I realized that my fingers were webbed and green scales were popping up on my arms.  I felt an overwhelming pull in my legs and panicked to remove my shorts. If I really was a, a mer, it made sense that the pull I felt was my tail trying to form.  

I quickly pulled off my shorts.  The feeling of legs morphing to tail was… weird.  It wasn't uncomfortable or painful in any way. Just different.  Honestly, once the whole transition was finished, it felt like a weight was lifted off of my chest. 

Staring down at my tail in wonder, I simply took in my changed features.  The green scales on my arms, my tail. My tail.  How weird was that sentence?  It was glistening and green, but almost had a blue shine to it when the light hit it just right.  Beautiful.  I had never seen anything like this.  

My wonder was short lived thanks to those annoying “scientists.”  One hopped into the tank, and before I could swim away, stuck me with a needle.  I could feel the effects immediately. It was easy for them to pull me out of the tank, sedated as I was.  

“Help me get him to the exhibit,” I heard one of them say before I let the drowsiness pull me into a medicated sleep.


	12. Chapter Eleven

_“Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday, dear Lucy. Happy Birthday to you,” a chorus of off key and barely held together voices bellowed._

_Yura laughed when cheers erupted and made his way over to his best friend, slinging an arm around her frail shoulders. He smirked, leaning in close to her ear and whispered, “So, how’s it feel to be the big three oh?”_

_Lucy laughed and pushed him away from her. “You’re a bastard. Just wait ‘til it’s your turn.”_

_“Yeah,” Yura drawled, “That’s not happening for_ years.”

_Lucy rolled her eyes. Soon she got distracted by eating her cake and ice cream and saying goodbye to all the people who came to celebrate with her._

_Eventually only Yura remained. She turned to him, “We still on for skating tomorrow?”_

_“Absolutely. I need to stop and pick some stuff up for my parents,” here Yura rolled his eyes, “so I’ll meet you at the pond.”_

_“Sounds good to me. You know, one day they’re gonna have to learn to live without you.”_

_*****_

_Their fun day of ice skating never happened. By the time Yura got there blood had already stained the ground by his fallen friend. He found her unresponsive at the edge of their frozen sanctuary and quickly called for help. As soon as the medics got to their location, they took Lucy away, trying to get her to a hospital as quickly as possible. Yura rode along in the front of the ambulance._

_Lucy was pronounced dead before they even arrived at the hospital. The official report said it was a bullet from a hunting rifle._

_And just like that, Yura had lost his best friend._

_*****_

I awoke with a start. It had been awhile since I had thought of the past. Fionn had been the distraction I needed to not think of Lucy every single moment of the day. It was still painful. It would always be painful thinking of her, but she wouldn’t want me to be stuck in the past. She’d want me to live my life the way I want to and fill it with amazing experiences and memories.

I took a deep breath in and promptly realized something was off. It’s pretty hard not to realize something’s different when water floods into you through gills. I was kind of hoping all of that had been some crazy nightmare, as well.

So, I’m really a mermaid, no merman. Or, as Fionn called them: mer. I’d have to ask him why they,  _we_ , were called that.

Looking around I realized with a certain crushing amount of dread that I was in a tank. How the fuck am I going to get out of this situation?

I swam to the top of the tank to see if there happened to be a ladder within my grasp, but there wasn't. For how stupid those scientists seemed to be, I’d never been lucky enough for them to be quite that stupid.

I was startled by a loud tapping and a flash. Oh, hell no, there was a family on the outside of the tank tapping on the glass and trying to take pictures of me. Like I was some kind of exhibit. A freak put on display.

I was in an aquarium. With no way to escape.

I looked to the large sunken log that was in the bottom of my tank. Well, if I was gonna be stuck here, I sure as hell wasn’t gonna be a spectacle for everyone to gawk at. I darted toward the log and hid inside it.

It was dark. The aquarium had long since closed and everyone had gone home for the night except for the few custodial staff that took care of the facility after dark. I heard a thud coming from something hitting the glass of my tank. I tried to ignore it but it just kept happening.

Frustrated, I left the relative safety of my log. Glaring in the direction of the thudding and expecting to see a custodian, I was shocked to see Fionn standing there waving his arms. Wait, he wasn’t waving he was pointing upward. And now I saw the cause of the thudding. There was a rope hanging over the side of my tank, stopping just above the water.

I torpedoed toward the rope and grabbed on. I intended to climb up the rope, but stopped my ascent when the rope began moving, Fionn was pulling me to safety.

“Wait there until you change back,” Fionn instructed. “Then you can climb down the ladder.” Sure enough, there was a ladder on the outside of the tank, not far from where Fionn had thrown his rope. “I have clothing on the ground for you to put on. Although,” he added with a suggestive lilt to his voice, “I don’t know how long either of us are going to be wearing them.”

I rolled my eyes and willed myself to transform quickly. The last thing I wanted was for freedom to be snatched away from me now. And worse, if someone found me now, they would also get a hold of Fionn.

I’m not sure how long it took, my perception of time was all thrown off from being in the lab and tank, but eventually I had two legs again and climbed down the ladder. Fionn threw the clothes at me as soon as I made it to the ground. “Hurry and put those on, we need to get out of here.”

I dressed hastily and Fionn lead me from the outdoor exhibits at the aquarium off into the land surrounding the aquarium. We walked quickly and silently, neither of us daring to talk for fear of someone hearing us making our escape. Eventually he lead me down a rocky slope and I was surprised to hear the gentle crashing of waves. I looked to Fionn in surprise.

He laughed, “Yes, that’s the ocean you hear,” he confirmed.

A there, about fifty yards out was a boat. And on the boat was, “Hurry the fuck up,” the figure on the boat groused. Yeah, that was definitely Edna.

We both swam to the boat as quickly as possible. No sooner had we stepped onto the boat than Edna sped away.

She drove through the night. I felt immensely grateful for her pulling the all-nighter to ensure our safety.

Once Edna decided we were far enough away from the danger of the scientists we all decided that it would be safer if Fionn and I took to the sea. “I’ll meet you idiots in California,” she turned to Fionn. “You know where you’re going. Right?”

“Yeah, Edna, I’ll get us there.”

“Yura,” Edna addressed me, “I’ll call your parents and tell them to meet us there.”

I nodded my head in gratitude, “Thank you.”

Fionn stepped out of his clothing and waited for me to do the same. He gave me an appreciative look up and down, “Ready?”

I heaved a sigh, “As I’ll ever be.”

We jumped into the ocean.

Next stop: California.


End file.
